Ben Hogan Irons Have Edge On The Market

Ben Hogan as a player was one of the giants of the game in the 1940s and 50s and the equipment company he founded in 1953 followed the same high standards. It's been through few a hands since then and after Eldolon bought the name from Callaway in 2014, they began to return it to its former glory.

Latest in the line are the Hogan Edge irons and the 2018 version released on the 65th anniversary of Hogan's win at Carnoustie will bring back memories for golfers of a certain age.

It was 30 years ago that the original model came out and I remember my father playing with them for many years, so he would have been pleased to see that the Edge ethos remains in the 2018 version.

This was to combine the feel of a forged iron with the forgiveness of a cavity back, something which is still unusual today.

In the 2018 Edge iron the carbon steel cavity back head is forged in two pieces that are laser welded together and the hollow head is filled with polycarbonate foam to support the face and improve the sound and feel.

The face varies in thickness with the longer irons having a thinner face for more distance and the shorter irons a thicker face for better feel.

The lofts on the Ben Hogan Edge irons stick to their 4° gapping they call the PreciseLoft System, but these lofts are pretty standard for modern day clubs.

The sole has a V-shape design that was on the previous Hogan irons, but the angles are softer than before to combine a high bounce leading edge with a low bounce trailing edge.

This involves a grind on the leading and trailing edge of the sole to ensure better contact through the turf.

At address the Edge 2018 irons feature a medium level of offset and a thicker top line to promote confidence and also to enable the face to square up more easily through impact.

As well as all the technical changes to the product, the way they are sold has changed too, with the Ben Hogan Golf Company selling them direct online to both USA and UK customers, which in turn makes them competitively priced and should give them even more of an Edge in the market.